Rubber band dispenser



Sept 1959 D. A. SPRINGER RUBBER BAND DISPENSER Filed April 3, 1958 U itd States Patent RUBBER BAND DISPENSER Donald A. Springer, Merriam, Kans.

, Application April '3, 1958, Serial No. 726,254

3 Claims. (Cl. 206 -56) which rubber bands may bereadily removed from the present dispenser.

Briefly, the present rubber band dispenser comprises a single elongated sheet of material rebent upon itselfon a median, transverse line and then overlapped edgessuitably secured together after insertion of a supply of rubber bands into the packet. The rubber bands within the packet are arranged at random therein and each of the opposed, flat walls of the dispenser is provided with a plurality of integral tabs surrounded by respective lines of weakness, rendering the tabs easily removable to present aligned openings in opposed Walls whereby the bands may be dispensed individually from thepacket by use of one finger in the holes to push the band through one hole to a point of access.

A rubber band dispenser constructed in accordance with the preferred concepts of the present invention is necessary to take the top oif of the container and then disentangle one of the bands from the many contained in the box. This procedure was time consuming and it is the primary object of this invention to provide a rubber band dispenser wherein a single band may be removed from the dispenser in a minimum amount of time I latter in a suitable manner as by adhesive to present a and with little eiiort.

It is a further important object of the present invention to provide a rubber band dispenser in the nature of a fiat packet adapted to contain a supply of rubber bands arranged'at random therein and having aligned openings in opposed walls thereof so that a single band may be removed from the packet by merely inserting a finger through the holes to push one band through one of the holes to a'point of ready access. i I

A further important object of the instant-invention is to provide a flat packet as described above wherein there is provided a plurality of openings in each of the opposed side walls and wherein corresponding, opposed openings are in alignment, to the end that bands disposed at random in the packet may be readily removed therefrom regardless of the position of such bands in the dispenser.

Also an important object of the instant invention is to provide a rubber band dispenser which may be constructed of a single sheet of material in the nature of stiff paper by merely bending the paper on a transverse median line and then securing overlapped edges of the paper to present flat packet.

An additional important aim is to provide a rubber band dispenser constructed of a single sheet of material wherein opposed, fiat walls of the packet are provided with a plurality of integral tabs surrounded by lines of weakness, rendering the tabs easily removable so that bands disposed at random in the packet may be readily removed in the manner described above.

Other objects and less important details of construction of the present rubber band dispenser will be described or be obvious from the following specification when considering the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Figure l is a plan view of a rubber band dispenser embodying the concepts of the present invention and having the tabs defining certain of the openings therein removed to indicate the disposition of rubber bands within the dispenser;

Fig. 2 is a likewise a plan view similar to Fig. 1 with one side wall thereof being broken away to show the disposition of bands within the dispenser;

Figs. 3 and 4 are cross-sectional views taken on the lines 3-3 and 4-4 of Fig. 1 respectively; and

Fig. 5 is a perspective view illustrating the manner in illustrated in the drawing and designated generally by the numeral 10. Dispenser 10 is constructed of an elongated sheet 12 of relatively stiff material, such as cardboard, rebent upon itself along transverse, median line 14 to present a pair of opposed, rectangular, flat walls 16 and 18.

As indicated in Fig. l, the peripheral edges 20, 22 and 24 of wall 18 preferably extend beyond the corresponding peripheral edges of wall 16 and are secured to the hollow packet as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. Edges 20 and 22 are initially secured to wall 16 prior to joining of edge 24 to the same so that a supply of rubber bands 26 Y may be placed within dispenser packet with the bands arranged at random therein, as clearly indicated in Fig. 2. Thereupon, edge 24 of wall 18 is joined to wall 16 to present a closed packet containing bands 26.-

Each of the walls 16 and 18 has a plurality of integral, substantially elliptical tabs 28 therein surrounded by a line of weakness 30 rendering the tabs easily removed for purposes to be hereinafter more fully defined. It can be seen that upon removal of the tabs 28, an opening 32 is presented communicating with the interior of dispenser packet 10. Openings 32 are of such size to receive the end of a persons finger. Also, in order to render the bands 26 easily removable from packet 10, tabs 28 and thereby openings 32 in opposed walls 16 and 18 are in substantial alignment so that a person may push his finger through both walls 16 and 18 through aligned openings 32.

Because of the random arrangement of bands 26 in packet 10, tabs 28 at opposed ends of packet 10 and thereby the openings 32 presented upon removal of tabs 28, are preferably arranged so that the major axes of openings 32 at each end of packet 10 are at a ninety degree angle with respect to each other to facilitate removal of bands 26. It has been determined that bands 26 may be more easily removed when the longitudinal length thereof are substantially parallel with the minor axes of openings 32 and thus, by providing openings at opposite ends of packet 10, which are at right angles to each other, bands 26 may be easily removed from packet 10 regardless of the relative disposition of the same.

A pair of spaced perforations 34 are provided in each of the walls 16 and 18 adjacent corresponding edges thereof and are positioned so that opposed perforations are in alignment. Perforations 34 in each wall 16 and 18 are preferably spaced apart a distance equal to that between the segmental clamping rings of standard notebooks so that packet 10 may be placed in such notebooks for ready availability.

The manner in which dispenser packet 10 is utilized is clearly shown in Fig. 5 wherein it can be seen that a pair of opposed tabs 28 are initially pushed out of respective walls 16 and 18 to present aligned openings 32,

y 7 Patented Sept. 29, 1959 whereupon the person may insert his finger through such aligned openings to push one of the bands 26 through a hole 32 to a point of access.

In this respect it is to be pointed out that the elliptical configuration of tabs 28 and thereby openings 32 is of importance because such configuration permits a person to insert his finger through both of a pair of aligned openings without it being necessary to provide a relatively large opening, which would increase the likelihood of bands 26 accidentally becoming displaced from packet through one of the openings 32. Furthermore, the elliptical configuration of openings 32 permits a person removing a band 26 from packet 10 to use two fingers in one of the openings 32 to remove a band 26 from packet 10 when such band has been pushed partially through an opening.

In order to eliminate the necessity of tapping packet 10 on a hard surface to cause bands 26 to move toward a pair of aligned openings 32 as the bands 26 are removed from the packet, a plurality of removable tabs 28 are provided in each of the Walls 16 and 18 so that when bands 26 have been removed from one end of packet 10, the remaining rubber bands 26 may be easily removed by merely pushing out the tabs 28 at the other end of packet 10, whereby the bands 26 may also be readily dispensed from packet 10 in a manner as described above.

Dispenser packet 10 may be manufactured at a minimum of cost because the only materials needed are a single sheet of fiat paper or cardboard, and the containers may be disposed of when all of the bands 26 have been exhausted from the same. Furthermore, because of the elliptical configuration of tabs 28 and thereby openings 32, which are only of sufiicient size to receive the end of a person's finger, the bands 26 will not become accidentally displaced from packet 10 until a person inserts his finger through aligned openings 32.

Having thus described the invention what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. A rubber band dispenser comprising a relatively small, substantially flat packet; a supply of rubber bands arranged at random in said packet, the latter having opposed walls each having an opening therein, said openings being in alignment whereby the bands may be dispensed individually from the packet by use of one finger in the holes to push the band through one hole to a point of access.

2. A rubber band dispenser comprising a relatively small, substantially flat packet; a supply of rubber bands arranged at random in said packet, the latter having opposedwalls each having an integral tab surrounded by a line of weakness, rendering the tab easily removed to present an opening in the wall, said openings being in alignment whereby the bands may be dispensed individually from the packet by use of one finger in the holes to push the band through one hole to a point of access.

3. A rubber band dispenser comprising a relatively small, substantially flat packet; a supply of rubber bands arranged at random in said packet, the latter having opposed walls each having a plurality of integral tabs sur rounded by a line of weakness, rendering each tab easily removed to present an opening in the wall, said openings of each wall being in alignment with a corresponding opening in the opposite wall whereby the bands may be dispensed individually from the packet by use of one finger in the holes to push the band through one hole to a point of access.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 697,503 Lindsay Apr. 15, 1902 1,240,026 Chapman Sept. 11, 1917 1,900,606 Kipper Mar. 7, 1933 1,984,351 Johnson Dec. 11, 1934 2,317,860 Sorensen Apr. 27, 1943 2,619,226 Adams Nov. 25, 1952 

